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Unique woodturning artisan. Your source for Vicmarc lathes, woodturning tools and accessories.

22/10/2026

HOW WOULD YOU FINISH IT? 🤔

Fresh off the lathe and still completely unfinished.
This is one of my favorite stages of a bowl—the wood is still natural, the grain is wide open, and you can already imagine how much it’s going to change once the finish hits it.

But here’s the question…
If this bowl were yours, how would YOU finish it?
🪵 Keep it as natural-looking as possible?
✨ Oil it and bring that grain to life?
🤎 Give it a soft wax finish?
💎 Go with a little more gloss?
🌿 Or definitely matte/satin?

There’s no wrong answer—and I’m curious to see which one wins.
Tell us in the comments: OIL, WAX, GLOSS, MATTE or NATURAL? 👇
And then we’ll show you what Ken decided to do with it. 😉

21/10/2026

🪵 WOODTURNER CONFESSION TIME 😂 (lets have some fun!)

Okay, woodturners… let’s hear it.

What’s something you own WAY too many of… but somehow you can still justify buying just one more? 😆

Sandpaper?
Chucks?
Gouges?
Turning blanks?
Finishes?
Tools you swear are completely different from the other 14 you already own? 😂

And don’t say, “You can never have too many tools.”
…actually, go ahead. We know that’s what you’re thinking. 😉

👇 Confession time — what do you have way too many of?

20/10/2026

🪵 The shape is right. The tool marks are gone… almost. But that surface still feels rough.

You know the stage.

The turning is finished, you run your hand over the piece—and find those little scratches, ridges and rough spots that are going to show up the minute you put a finish on it.

That’s where Grit-Grip earns its place at the lathe.

Instead of a flimsy piece of sandpaper sliding around between your fingers, Grit-Grip has abrasive on both sides of a thin, flexible cushioned core. It gives you something you can actually hold onto while still bending and conforming around the curves of bowls, vessels and spindles.

Fold it. Bend it. Wrap it around a curve. Use it wet or dry.

And because there’s grit on both sides, you’re not constantly fighting that slippery paper backing.

We’ve got Grit-Grip in the shop in grits ranging from 80 all the way to 3000, so you can go from taking care of the rough stuff to refining that surface for a beautiful finish.

Because a good turning deserves more than a “good enough” sanding job. 😉

Grit-Grip is available now at Branches To Bowls.

🌳 From rough wood to a finish you’ll want to run your hand over.

19/10/2026

🪵 DID YOU KNOW?

Sharp tools aren’t just more efficient—they’re safer, too.

A sharp turning tool cuts cleanly with less pressure, giving you better control at the lathe. A dull tool makes you push harder, which can lead to catches, rougher cuts, and less control.

Quick tip: If you find yourself forcing the cut, it might be time to sharpen.

Sharp tools. Cleaner cuts. Better control. 👍

18/10/2026

The Guy Behind Branches To Bowls 🪵

If you’ve ordered from Branches To Bowls, called with a question, stopped by our booth at a woodturning show, or talked tools with us, there’s a pretty good chance you’ve met Ken.
But there’s a little more to the guy behind the business than boxes, orders and woodturning supplies.

👥 Ken genuinely loves the woodturning community.
He’s the guy who will load up the truck, haul everything into a show and spend hours setting up… then happily stand there talking wood, tools and turning with people all day.
He’s also the guy who will make a detour and surprise a fellow turner at his house—which is exactly what happened when Ken showed up at John Sheehan’s door. Sometimes the friendships that come from woodturning are every bit as important as what comes off the lathe.
And then there are moments that mean even more.

While in St. Paul, Ken had the opportunity to turn on his uncle’s old lathe, now preserved in a museum. A group of woodturners gathered around to watch as that old lathe turned once again.
Think about that for a moment.
An old machine.
A family connection.
A craft passed through generations.
And a room full of woodturners who understood why that moment mattered.
That’s really what Branches To Bowls has always been about.

Yes, we sell woodturning tools and supplies. Yes, there are orders to pack, boxes to ship and shows to set up.
But behind all of that is a man who simply loves woodturning, loves the people involved in it, and still gets excited about a good tool, an interesting piece of wood, an old lathe—and a great conversation with another turner.

That’s Ken. And that’s a big part of the heart behind Branches To Bowls. 🪵

17/10/2026

🪵 GUESS THE WOOD! 🔍

All right, woodturners… let’s see how well you know your grain!

Take a close look at this piece. Those colours, lines and patterns might give you a clue. 👀

What species do you think it is—and what tipped you off?

No sniffing it.
No picking it up.
And no asking Ken for the answer! 😂

Bonus question: What would you turn from it?

Drop your guesses below! 👇

16/10/2026

🪵 KEN’S TOOL OF CHOICE — THE BOWL GOUGE

Hello, Ken here from Branches To Bowls.
Valerie asked me, “Why do you like this tool?”
Well, when I’m turning bowls, my choice is the 5/8" Carter and Son bowl gouge with its traditional V-shaped flute.
I’ve used mine for about eight years. It cuts cleanly, feels well balanced, and holds a sharp edge for a long time. It does what I need it to do.
And I appreciate spending more time turning… because sharpening isn’t my favorite hobby. 😂
After eight years of reaching for the same gouge, I’d say it has earned its place beside my lathe.

What’s your go-to bowl gouge—and what keeps you reaching for it?

15/10/2026

🪵 CARTER & SON OR HUNTER — WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE?

We carry both at Branches To Bowls, and Ken uses both in his workshop. So we asked him why!

🔹 Carter & Son: a sharp edge you can reshape and resharpen

These tools use M42 high-speed steel with 10% cobalt, which helps them resist wear and retain a sharp edge. Their interchangeable aluminum handles give Ken the balance he enjoys.

For Ken, the biggest benefit is spending more time turning between trips to the grinder.

“On one black walnut pedestal-leg project, I turned five legs before resharpening. For me, that works well. I can keep turning.”

That’s Ken’s experience on that project—and a pretty impressive pile of shavings! 😄

🔹 Hunter: a carbide cutting edge you rotate and replace

Hunter uses fine-grain carbide cutters. Instead of sharpening them, you rotate the cutter to expose a fresh edge and replace it when the usable edge is spent.

Their cutter design allows a clean cutting action with proper tool presentation. Carbide doesn’t automatically mean scraping!

One of Ken’s favorites is the #2 Osprey. He reaches for it when making baby rattles, Christmas ornaments, goblets, pens and razor handles.

“I use it on wood and resin. On resin, I can get ribbons coming off and a finish that sometimes lets me start sanding at 320 or even 400 grit.”

Results depend on the material and technique, but that’s what keeps Ken reaching for his Osprey.

Two different cutting materials. Two different ways to maintain an edge. Both earn their place in Ken’s workshop.

What do you reach for most—traditional steel tools, carbide, or a combination? 👇

14/10/2026

Most people would walk right past it. Ken sees what it could become.
A rough piece of wood.
A section of branch or log.
Something that, at first glance, doesn’t look particularly special.
But Ken has always had a way of looking at wood differently.
When he was commissioned to create this communion set, the chalice didn’t begin looking anything like a chalice. It began with raw pieces of wood that had to be selected, cut, fitted and glued together.
Then came the lathe.
Little by little, the square edges disappeared. The shape began to emerge. The grain that had been hidden inside the wood started revealing itself.
And eventually, what began as something rough became this.
A handcrafted chalice created to be used for communion.
That’s one of the things we love most about woodturning. The beauty isn’t added to the wood. So much of it was already there. Ken’s job is to see the possibility and carefully uncover it.
Sometimes the most remarkable pieces begin with wood most people would have simply walked past.
From branch to bowl — and sometimes, to something completely unexpected.

13/10/2026

There’s something to be said for walking into the workshop, turning on a machine you know well, and simply enjoying the time at the lathe. 🪵

For a woodturner who owns a Vicmarc VL240 ASM EVS Heavy Duty, there’s a lot to appreciate.

The solid cast-iron construction gives it that reassuring stability when a substantial piece of timber goes on the lathe. The electronic variable speed makes adjusting the RPM simple, and the swivel headstock is one of those features you really come to appreciate when you’re working inside a bowl or vessel.

Instead of twisting yourself into positions you definitely didn’t learn in woodturning class, you can swivel the headstock to a more comfortable working angle. 😄

With four pin-lock positions at 22.5° increments up to 90°, you can position the work where it makes sense for you. And when it’s time to bring the headstock back, the accurate locking system returns it to the zero position.

Add the fully enclosed heavy-duty stand and the full-length signature Red Stop Bar, and you have a machine designed with the person standing behind the gouge in mind.

But maybe the best feature isn’t written on the specification sheet.
It’s having a lathe you trust enough to stop thinking about the machine… and start thinking about the piece of wood in front of you.
And for a woodturner, that’s something worth being grateful for. ❤️🪵

Address

Sundance

T2X1W5

Opening Hours

Monday	09:00 - 17:00
Tuesday	09:00 - 17:00
Wednesday	09:00 - 17:00
Thursday	09:00 - 17:00
Friday	09:00 - 17:00
Saturday	09:00 - 17:00

Telephone

403-830-3049

Website

http://branchestobowls.com/

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